This invention relates to a method and apparatus for in-field processing the proteinaceous plant juice fraction of green-plant vegetation to obtain a leaf protein concentrate fraction and a deproteinized liquid.
It is conventional practice to cut green-plant vegetation, such as alfalfa, and to haul it from the field to a processing plant by truck. In a typical situation from two to six hours may lapse from the time of first hauling until plant processing actually commences. Various processes are followed in stationary commercial plant, such as disclosed in following patents:
______________________________________ Patentee U.S. Pat. No. ______________________________________ Peebles et al. 2,552,343 Peebles et al. 2,607 688 Bickoff et al. 3,684,520 Batley 3,775,133 Bickoff et al. 3,823,128 ______________________________________
There is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,448, which issued to Donald C. Kline and which is assigned to the same assignee as this invention, the method and apparatus for processing green-plant vegetation, such as alfalfa, in the field. The Kline patent discloses that before a vegetation plant such as alfalfa can be processed at the stationary plants, it is necessary to dehydrate the alfalfa. This dehydration of the alfalfa causes a deterioration in the carotene and xanthophyll content of the alfalfa. The Kline invention avoids this deterioration by employing a field-going machine capable of field processing the alfalfa to contain a fibrous fraction and a green liquid fraction. The green liquid fraction is further treated to obtain a protein component and a deproteinized brown liquid component, whereby the deproteinized brown liquid component is applied onto the field as the machine moves through the
The Kline patent discribes a machine having a harvesting head assembly mounted on the front of the vehicle for cutting the alfalfa and a conveying means to deliver the alfalfa rearwardly to a macerator which shreds the harvested alfalfa. The macerated alfalfa is separated into fibrous and green liquid fractions by a dewatering press which is connected to the macerator by a conveyor. The fibrous fraction is then blown rearwardly into a trailer pulled behind the vehicle. This fibrous fraction has a 65 to 68% moisture content which is quite suitable for animal feed. The liquid fraction has a green color and consists of 90% water. The green liquid fraction contains chloroplastic proteins, chlorophyll, carotene, xanthophyll, and other carotenoids, lipids, mineral compounds and cytoplasmic proteins.
Kline patent discloses heating the green liquid fraction to a predetermined temperature and pumping it to a holding tank where the protein fraction floats on top of the deproteinized brown liquid. The leaf protein concentrate is skimmed from the deproteinized liquid and is collected in a storage container mounted on the side of the vehicle. The deproteinized liquid is then applied to the ground beneath the vehicle by its sprayer assembly.
The leaf protein concentrate is quite valuable as a feed supplement consisting of chloroplastic proteins, chlorophyll, carotene, zanthophyll, lipids, and cytoplasmic proteins. Most of the water and minerals contained in the green juice liquid fraction is separated into the deproteinized liquid which has a brown color.
In the Kline patent it is described that the green liquid fraction may be heated by injecting steam into the liquid fraction to promote coagulation. Kline suggests that the steam can be generated from the cooling system of the engine where it is necessary to carry make-up water for the vehicle. One of the objects of this invention is to avoid the necessity of carrying make-up water and of heating such make-up water for producing steam.